1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to Internet browser software and methods of restricting Internet access of a computer, and more specifically relates to restricting Internet access of a public or semi-public computer.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The Internet is a large computer network. The World Wide Web (WWW) was designed to allow a computer user, using a client program, to view files located on server computers throughout the Internet.
A file is accessed through the computer user's Internet connection and returned thereto and displayed on the web browser thereof. A WWW HTML (hyper-text mark-up language) document is normally viewed by selecting a file located on a server computer that is accessed by requesting the address of the file, the Uniform Resource Locator (URL).
A URL is usually accessed by entering a group of characters in an appropriate field in a web browser. The URL request is processed by the web browser and the file is located on the Internet utilizing IP. Frequently accessed web pages, however, may be assigned to an icon or to a list contained within the web browser.
Files written in Hyper Text Mark-Up language are known as Hypertext documents and viewing these files is accomplished using the web browser. Hypertext links are another method of finding an appropriate file for viewing. Web pages in HTML allow a user viewing a web page to “click” on certain text or on a certain image and thereby request the underlying URL of another web page.
The Internet is organized so that every computer thereon has its own identifying numerical address. Transmission Control Protocol and Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) allow computers on the Internet to communicate with, and to find correct locations of, each other. The numerical address of each computer is referred to as the IP address. The URL consists of a protocol, a domain name associated with an IP address, and a file name.
The system whereby a name is assigned to the computer number is the Domain Name System. Names are used as a mnemonic alternative to a numerical IP address. A Domain Name consists of a number of elements designed to correspond to an IP address. The elements of a Domain Name consist of a top level domain and may include second, third, and fourth level domains. By knowing the correct domain name a computer may gain access to any computer located on the WWW.
Organizations that are by necessity obligated to provide computers in public areas often find that the open nature of the Internet allows an individual to use the computer to access material that is not consistent with the organization's goals. Access restriction is therefore required and may be accomplished by a variety of methods.
One such method is to establish a tabular listing of acceptable URLs. The selection of websites is then accomplished by selecting from a list of hypertext links. This method requires maintaining a current list of the desired websites for the user's access.
Another approach is to provide access permission based on a user authorization level and rating the contents of individual websites. This approach necessitates assigning an authorization level based on parameters that an individual may choose not to divulge. Also, web page ratings must be continually reviewed to remain current. Both aspects, assigning an authorization level and assigning a rating to individual web pages may require resources that are not available to a given organization. Additionally, this approach necessitates that the organization responsible respond to changes in a user's authority level in a timely manner to prevent inappropriate restriction to an acceptable website.
Filtering services are offered as another approach to limiting access to information found on the WWW. Generally directed towards filtering pornography and violence, these services normally charge a monthly fee. A filtering service may apply its standards to any given website.
Problems associated with the above methods of limiting access are that a large amount of resources are required to start and maintain the number of websites allowed to a given user. Another is that due to the changing nature of the Internet, new websites are being added all the time and they must be subjected to review on a continual basis.
Numerous innovations for Internet information systems have been provided in the prior art that will be described infra. Even though these innovations may be suitable for the specific individual purposes to which they address, however, they differ from the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,717,913 discloses an Information Filtering (IF) system for retrieving relevant text data from a data base document collection. A user can use this system to access a dynamic data stream to retrieve relevant data such as accessing e-mail or a wire-service. Alternatively, a user can use the IF system to access a data storage archive such as electronically stored patents, journals and the like. The invention includes several steps. The first step has a user reduce the information they are interested in into a tangible form such as manually writing a natural language user need statement, or alternatively inputting the statement electronically into a computer file for storage. The next step is to create a filter window having an adjustable document viewing text length that will be used to electronically scan through the database collection of documents in order to determine a relevancy value for each scanned document. The filter can be created several ways using synonym and domain lists. Alternatively, the synonym and lists for each document can be determined by Entity-Relationship (ER) modeling to generate a search schema. After documents receive relevancy values, the user is free to view only those documents having relevancy values that exceed a pre-selected threshold value. Documents can be ranked from most relevant to least relevant. Feedback information from viewing the retrieved documents can be used to update the synonym/domain lists of the filtering window to enhance the relevance retrieval of subsequent documents.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,787,254 discloses a browser extension method and system for a Web browser in a computer network having a client connectable to one or more servers, the client having an interface for displaying a first hypertext document with one or more hypertext links to a second hypertext document located at a server. Initially, an access parameter indicating a selected parameter which describes an access to another hypertext document is associated with a hypertext link. Thereafter, the hypertext link to the second hypertext document is selected in response to user input. Next, an access time period is initiated, during which the hypertext link accesses the second hypertext document, in response to the selection of the hypertext document. Thereafter, the access parameter is displayed in response to initiating the access time period, permitting a user to review the access parameter.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,802,518 discloses a secure electronic distribution of research documents over the World Wide Web to investors who are authorized to receive the research documents. A repository server receives research documents from contributors. Also received are corresponding document profiles with information relating to each research document including authorization information specifying who is permitted to access each research document. The repository server includes a first database for structured query searches and a second database for full text searches. A web server is coupled to the repository server and coupled to the World Wide Web. The web server receives requests from investors for research documents that satisfy a query. The web server determines whether the first database or the second database should be searched based upon the type of query. The repository server transmits to the web server a list of research documents that satisfy the query and which the investor is authorized to access according to the authorization information. The web server formats the list of documents according to a template form. Optionally, queries can be optimized. The system has a control mechanism to prevent concurrent unauthorized access by two people using the same ID/password combination.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,920,859 discloses a search engine for retrieving documents pertinent to a query indexes documents in accordance with hyperlinks pointing to those documents. The indexer traverses the hypertext database and finds hypertext information including the address of the document the hyperlinks point to and the anchor text of each hyperlink. The information is stored in an inverted index file, which may also be used to calculate document link vectors for each hyperlink pointing to a particular document. When a query is entered, the search engine finds all document vectors for documents having the query terms in their anchor text. A query vector is also calculated, and the dot product of the query vector and each document link vector is calculated. The dot products relating to a particular document are summed to determine the relevance ranking for each document.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,933,832 discloses a retrieval system for performing database retrieval in response to a retrieval request that includes a database preparing means for collecting corresponding data to prepare a database under at least a condition that an update frequency range of data serving as a target for index table generation is uniquely assigned to the database, and an update frequency of data falls within the assigned update frequency range, or a mean update frequency of a data group to which the data belongs falls within the assigned update frequency range.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,953,732 discloses a computer-implemented method and system for retrieving information. A first file of information is received which includes a first markup language to identify contents of the information. Responsive to receiving the first file of information, the first file of information is parsed to generate a list of profiles, and at least one corresponding topic for each of the list of profiles. A second file in a second markup language is created containing the list of the profiles and at least one corresponding third file is created in a third markup language for the at least one corresponding topic for each of the list of profiles. The second file contains anchors referencing each at least one corresponding third file, and first markup instances in the first file of information are converted to second markup instances in either the second file or the third file. The first file of information is parsed to determine the at least one article, if any, for each of the at least one corresponding top for the each of the list of profiles, and a corresponding brief for the at least one article. A fourth file and a fifth file are generated for the at least one article, if any, for each of the at least one corresponding topic for each of the list of profiles. The fourth file includes a brief of each of the at least one article in the first file of information and an anchor to the fifth file, the fifth file including text for the at least one article, if any, for each of the at least one corresponding topic for each of the list of profiles. In implemented embodiments, a sixth file can also be created which contains a plurality of anchors referencing a plurality of the fifth files, where in the anchors in the sixth file are arranged by each of the profile and corresponding topic. The first file of information can include receiving an electronic mail (e-mail) message.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,978,828 discloses an apparatus and method of providing notification of a content change of a web page. The method includes the steps of transmitting a request from a first electronic system to a second electronic system for a quotient value indicative of the content change, transmitting the quotient value from the second electronic system to the first electronic system, comparing the quotient value to a predetermined value to determine whether a threshold is triggered, and notifying the first electronic system of the content change if the threshold is triggered.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,112,202 discloses a system and method for searching for desired items from a network of information resources. In particular, the system and method have advantageous applicability to searching for World Wide Web pages having desired content. An initial set of pages are selected, preferably by running a conventional keyword-based query, and then further selecting pages pointing to, or pointed to from, the pages found by the keyword-based query. Alternatively, the invention may be applied to a single page, where the initial set includes pages pointed to by the single page and pages which point to the single page. Then, iteratively, authoritativeness values are computed for the pages of the initial set, based on the number of links to and from the pages. One or more communities, or “neighborhoods,” of related pages are defined based on the authoritativeness values thus produced. Such communities of pages are likely to be of particular interest and value to the user who is interested in the keyword-based query or the single page.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,139,177 discloses web access functionality embedded in a device that includes modules for generating a device web page wherein the device web page enables selection of at least one control function for the device. The web access functionality also includes modules for accessing the device web page via a communication path such that a user of a web browser accesses the control function for the device through the device web page. The control function includes control functions for loading new information into the device via the communication path and control functions for providing notification messages via the communication path upon the occurrence of events in the device.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,145,000 discloses a method and system for creating and navigating linear hypermedia resource programs. The system includes a distributed hypermedia resource network having a plurality of hypermedia resources residing on one or more remote information nodes. A common remote information node is in communication with a subscriber station and the remote information nodes in the distributed network. The common remote information node contains at least one linear hypermedia resource program consisting of pre-selected media elements from one or more hypermedia resources linked with exclusive linear links, each media element in the linear program having only one forward link to the next media element. The method includes the steps of downloading and displaying a media element in the linear program and responding to user commands to download and display the next media element in the linear program.
It is apparent that numerous innovations for Internet information systems have been provided in the prior art that are adapted to be used. Furthermore, even though these innovations may be suitable for the specific individual purposes to which they address, however, they would not be suitable for the purposes of the present invention as heretofore will be described.